Food fights
Hosts struggle with the logistics and time involved in meal planning, grocery shopping, and food preparation; the headache and stress of satisfying picky eaters, dietary restrictions, and diverse palates; and the overall burden and financial cost of this daily responsibility.
In particular, we often get asked what a “normal” serving size is, or what snacks hosts should provide. Yet even the experts dodge this question; Canada’s Food Guide eliminated serving sizes in 2019 in favour of using proportions of food groups to help people make healthy meals or snacks. Half of your plate should be made up of vegetables and fruits, one-quarter whole grain foods, and one-quarter protein foods.
That said, figuring out quantities is largely about common sense. For instance, a student who eats an entire loaf of bread per day is eating too much (though some students, such as athletes, pay extra for more daily calories). Limiting a student to two pieces of bread at breakfast is too little. Hosts who ration their student’s food in this way won’t last long in our program.
But keep in mind that some disputes over quantity of food are related to a cultural norm or expectation. For example, when an important cultural staple is missing from the diet, like rice for Japanese students, or cooked fresh vegetables for Chinese students, it can feel like there’s no food at all. Or it could be about the timing of the main meal. For example, in many Latin American food cultures, lunch is the largest meal of the day and is eaten as a family, and dinner is a small meal that’s served late in the evening. You may notice students wanting more food in their packed lunches and eating a lot more snacks between meals to make up for the adjustment to your mealtimes. Snacks don’t have to be expensive or heavy; raw fruits and vegetables, fresh juice or smoothies tend to be popular choices.
My recommendation is to talk to your homestay coordinator if you’re having conflicts over quantities of food.
And remember: Issues around food are often not about the food. They are about the memories, rituals, and people. They are about familiarity, love, and home. When we talk about food in the context of homestay, we’re not just talking about ingredients or nutrition, we are talking about culture: family culture, regional culture, national culture. We’re talking about the very things that make us who we are, and define us in relation to others. Conflicts over food deserve the same open-mindedness and compassion you would bring to navigating any cultural difference.
